


Longer Days

by NorthernGhost



Category: Horizon: Zero Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: "DLC", Aged-Up Character(s), Angst, F/F, Fluff, One Shot Collection, Side Story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 21:55:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28552722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NorthernGhost/pseuds/NorthernGhost
Summary: Love and family life are very different lives than the "sisters", second-generation Elisabet Sobeck clones, are used to, but no one is going to truly complain about these changes.
Relationships: Aloy/Talanah Khane Padish, Anukai (OC)/Ikrie, Ara (OC)/Vansa (OC)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 7





	1. When the Morning Comes

**Author's Note:**

> So, it's my birthday, and I have a present for others!
> 
> This is somewhat of a "fanfic" of my own collab-fic with Imagine0314, [Came New Life](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26534272/chapters/64677847). One of the chapters that she wrote that we both loved from it was called "Longest Night", so this is somewhat of a "continuation" of that... at least just for fun.
> 
> Is it canon? Maybe. Does it matter? Naw, probably not.
> 
> Anyway, this is mainly for everyone who's read our collab so far, or anyone just looking for some fun stories with ultimately feel-good moments.
> 
> Enjoy the little collection!

As Vansa finally felt herself rousing from sleep, once again, she blinked against the much more golden light that filled the room, the brightness causing her to squint as she lifted one hand to rub at her eyes. As her arm fell back on the bed before her, she paused, staring at the sheets for a moment or two until she blinked rapidly, the empty half of the bed coming into view. Instantly, her heart rate skyrocketed as she sat bolt upright in bed, throwing the sheets off herself and glancing wildly about the space.

A few moments later, her eyes came to rest on a piece of bright red fabric on the floor near the wall to the right of the bed. She quickly crawled to the edge of the mattress, staring down at it for a moment or two until the memory of the previous night came back to her.

“That’s still here… wouldn’t be the first time she stole some of my clothes instead, though.”

Scrambling off the bed, Vansa quickly went to grab a soft, blue fabric robe from her wardrobe, only to find it missing. Confusion creased her face for a moment or two before the sound of a voice echoed down the hallway and through the open door to the bedroom. The healer turned toward it, staring at the empty portal for a moment before she let out a heavy sigh, shaking her head as she ran one hand back through her mess of curls.

Vansa turned in place, scanning about the room for several long moments before she sighed, bending to swipe the red, silk top from the floor and throwing it over her head. With the bottom untied, it hung loosely and easily past her waist, even reaching almost halfway to her knees. After ensuring that she pulled the last of the errant strands of hair from beneath the collar, the healer padded into the hallway, swinging right around the door on her shoulder before making her way down the short hallway to the living space.

As soon as she entered, she was overwhelmed by the scent of hot butter that filled the air and she inhaled slowly through her nose, relishing the heavy scent, before making her way toward the blue-clad redhead before her stove.

“You know,” she said softly as she suddenly appeared behind her, sliding her arms about Ara’s waist, “that’s my favorite robe.”

The redhead startled for a moment at the sudden voice and touch, but quickly relaxed as she glanced at her shoulder, where Vansa’s chin had come to rest.

“I can see why,” she replied, smirking.

“Don’t get hot butter on it and stain it,” the healer sighed, patting Ara’s stomach before moving to the chillbox a few feet away.

As she dug in it for a container of fruit juice blend the color of a Meridian sunset, she caught Ara eying her from the corner of her eye.

“Red… uh… red’s really your color.”

Vansa smirked, pulling the glass container free before turning back to Ara, placing it on the counter beside her.

“You should know.”

The redhead rolled her eyes as the healer smirked, but glanced down at the stolen top, tugging at it slightly. As a shiver ran down her spine, she lifted her head, turning back to her cabinets and pulling two glasses free. With both of them full, she lifted hers and downed nearly half of it in one swig, sighing heavily before pouring herself some more. Once both were full, again, she grabbed the other and approached Ara, turning to lean her back against the counter beside the stove as she held the glass before the redhead.

“What’s this?” she asked, sniffing it.

“My magic cure for hangovers,” Vansa shot back, smirking.

“I mean… I’m not even that hungover but…”

Ara shrugged and took a sip of the drink, considering it for a moment before her eyebrows raised.

“That’s… really good. Where’d you get it?”

“I can keep a  _ few _ secrets for a bit longer,” the healer teased, winking. “Might keep you coming back to my place, if I do.”

Ara paused for a moment in her work at the stove, setting the glass down on the opposite side before clearing her throat and turning back to Vansa.

“I… I want to… if you’ll let me, of course.”

The healer quickly took another sip of her drink before setting it down on the counter behind her and pushing forward. As she turned toward Ara, she wrapped her arms behind her, clasping her hands in the small of the redhead’s back.

“I will if you let me come by your place.”

Ara grinned nervously, but nodded, prompting Vansa to smile broadly.

“Of course you can come back here,” she continued softly. “I  _ want _ you to.”

“So… last night…”

“Drunk words, sober thoughts,” Vansa interrupted. “I told you.”

“So…  _ also _ not too drunk to remember…”

“Oh,” the healer breathed, leaning in close so her lips were inches from Ara’s ear, “I remember it all.”

She heard Ara swallow heavily beside her own ear as Vansa grinned but leaned in to place a slow, soft kiss against the redhead’s neck. The kisses continued along her jaw until finally she paused just over her lips, only to instead place a quick kiss on the tip of her nose.

“Don’t let our breakfast burn.”

Ara laughed as she shook her head, Vansa giving her a small pat on the back before releasing her and moving to grab plates. Within a few minutes, Ara delivered servings of some kind of egg and meat combination that she had attempted to fold into two separate bundles, but each had more or less fallen apart when she had tried to take them out of the pan.

“Well, I tried,” Ara sighed, placing the skillet back on the stove before grabbing her glass of juice and following Vansa to her couch.

“I don’t have a real table, so…” the healer shrugged, taking a seat against one arm of the furniture while Ara took the other.

“I don’t either, if you remember,” the redhead shot back, smirking.

“Guess we might need to change that.”

“Already thinking of moving in?”

Vansa froze with her first bite of food halfway to her mouth, a strange, heavy feeling sinking over her as she quickly swallowed to clear the lump in her throat.

“I-I… meant that… if we’re gonna be eating together more often… you… might want to invest, you know?”

She could feel Ara’s eyes on her as she quickly took the bite of food, nodding as she chewed it.

“It’s good,” she said, lowering her fork before finally glancing over at Ara, once again, to find her with an unreadable expression on her face.

“Sorry, I… I was just joking around, Van,” she said softly. “I…”

“I know,” Vansa interrupted. “I… I’m sorry, I… this…”

The healer took a deep breath before lowering her plate onto the small table before them and turning to Ara, sliding closer on the couch as the redhead deposited hers, as well.

“I… I want you to know that it doesn’t mean I don’t  _ mean _ this,” Vansa said softly, reaching to take Ara’s hands in hers, bringing them to rest on the couch between them. “I wasn’t lying about any of that. I… I want us to be good at this. I want us to be  _ good _ . I just… I’m still trying to get used to it… to—”

“The thought?” Ara interrupted.

Vansa drew a slow, deep breath before nodding.

“Me, too, Van.”

The redhead’s thumb slowly ran across the back of one of Vansa’s hands in a slow, soothing motion that sent goosebumps running up the healer’s arm.

“You know me, though,” she continued, clearing her throat softly. “I just… say shit.”

Vansa grinned, looking back up at her, again.

“I know. Part of why I like you.”

“You mean, why you  _ liiiiike _ me?”

The healer rolled her eyes before leaning forward, cupping Ara’s face with both hands and planting an intense kiss against her. The redhead responded in kind, reciprocating the motions as her hands came to rest on Vansa’s sides, just above her hips. A few moments later, the healer’s weight and pressure had pushed Ara back into the arm of the couch behind her, the two of them suddenly much more parallel to the floor.

A moment later, they paused, pulling apart as both of them breathed heavily.

“You know,” Ara breathed, her fingers gently tugging the bottom of the silk top up Vansa’s frame slightly, “I think I liked this top better on the floor.”

The healer smirked before allowing her to pull it up and over her head, tossing it aside as Vansa quickly undid the loose tie on the front of the robe Ara had appropriated, throwing it open as the redhead shrugged her shoulders free of it.

“Now get that out of the way before you ruin it with something else,” Vansa quipped.

Ara grinned, but obliged, pulling it free from under herself and tossing it with the silk top, the healer quickly settling into place atop her, once again.

“Now… where were we?”


	2. Chalk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Moms gonna be moms, and kids gonna be kids

As the door to the apartment opened, Lani and Kal immediately began speaking even louder and faster, prompting their redhead mother to recoil slightly in surprise, blinking at the onslaught.

“Okay, let’s make it through the doorway, first,” Anukai said, ushering the children inside before pointing toward the small rack just inside the door. “Boots off!”

As the children quickly set about tugging off their dirt and dust-covered boots, their mother turned back to the doorway, raising her eyebrows at her mirror image standing just outside.

“Had to make sure they were wide awake before they got back to me, huh?” she teased. “Thought you were supposed to tire them out.”

“A few candied apple slices woke ‘em up,” Ara shot back.

Anukai sighed, rolling her eyes as the other redhead laughed.

“I’m kidding, but I’m sure they’ll tell you  _ all _ about how they want to see what Vansa told them today.”

“Oh?” the redheaded mother replied, folding her arms over her chest and leaning against the doorway as she glanced toward the curly-haired brunette beside her sister. “What’s that?”

“I might have… mentioned I know how to make some basic fireworks,” Vansa replied, grinning sheepishly.

Anukai sighed, shaking her head, but ultimately laughed.

“As long as they’re not the ones lighting them off, I’m sure it can be arranged,” she said.

“Really?” Ara said, an expression of seemingly actual surprise on her face.

“You don’t  _ own _ fun, Ara,” Anukai shot back. “Maybe I want Vansa to let me light one off, though.”

“I’m sure it can be arranged,” the healer replied, smirking.

“What about me, Van?” Ara interjected

“Fireworks are too dangerous for kids,” she chided, tilting her head to the side slightly while giving the redhead beside her a faux-sympathetic look.

“Oh f—”

Anukai suddenly cleared her throat loudly, prompting Ara to halt mid-word before sighing heavily and shooting Vansa a dirty look, instead.

“Anyway, give me a few days to get it all ready, at least,” the healer continued, turning back to Anukai. “So… maybe this weekend?”

“Sounds perfect,” the braided redhead nodded, smiling. “Don’t let me hold you two.”

“From what?” Ara shot back, perhaps a little too quickly.

“Your own  _ fun _ ,” Anukai teased, winking before wishing them goodnight and closing the door to her apartment.

When she turned back to the living space behind her, she found both children excitedly buzzing about Ikrie as they attempted to recount their day as quickly as possible, it seemed. Kal was most excited about some device Vansa had shown him in her shop, while Lani was talking about running in some waterway.

“Wait, did you wear your boots in the water?” Anukai suddenly interjected, appearing at her mate’s side and staring down at their daughter with her eyebrows raised.

“No,” Lani and Kal said quickly, and in unison.

“Aunt Ara made us take them off,” Lani added.

“Good. I’d hate to have them stink up the apartment with the smell of your feet,” Anukai teased, smirking.

“Lani’s smell worse, anyway!”

“They do not!”

Anukai rolled her eyes as she turned and placed a soft kiss against Ikrie’s temple.

“Our moment of peace is gone,” she whispered.

“They’ll tire themselves out soon,” Ikrie replied, wrapping one arm behind her mate’s back and squeezing her gently.

True to her prediction, Lani and Kal fell much more still and quiet before dinner was even ready, both of them drawing with a set of dyed, colored charcoals that Talanah had brought them the morning of the Solstice. The return to momentary peace and quiet allowed their mothers to work in the kitchen uninterrupted, the constant bouts of teasing, poking, and prodding perhaps making the process take longer than it should, but it ultimately culminated in a moment when Anukai was attempting to slice a carrot on the small, wooden cutting board on the counter.

As she went to complete the last slice, another blade suddenly came to rest atop hers, clinking softly as the metal collided. Anukai glanced up from her work to find Ikrie beside her, smirking as she held her blade down with her own.

“Is that a challenge,  _ miss _ ?” the redhead asked.

“It could be, unless you just want to concede,” the dark-haired woman teased.

The redhead narrowed her eyes, but a moment later she had pulled her knife from underneath Ikrie’s and took a step back, brandishing it before her. Her mate did the same, each holding their blades at the ready.

“Mama! Mommy! What are you doing?!”

Anukai smirked at the sudden exclamations of confusion and concern from the children, but kept her eyes focused on Ikrie across from her. A moment later, the dark-haired woman slid forward, swinging her knife at the redhead’s, the metal clinking loudly as Anukai raised hers to block the move. As Ikrie recovered and playfully jabbed toward her, the redhead easily swatted her attack aside, pulling the dark-haired woman’s arm across her body.

“Oh, you want to do this for real?” Ikrie said, straightening up, once again. “I was just playing, before.”

“Playing at denting our knives?” Anukai teased.

Her mate rolled her eyes, setting the blade down beside her before grabbing two wooden spoons from a small jar nearby, tossing one to the redhead. Anukai caught it with her left hand, placing the knife on the counter beside her before switching the spoon to her right hand. Now that sharp edges were no longer involved, they moved faster and with more intention, each of them managing to actually land a few blows against the other’s arms and hands.

As Ikrie managed to slip past Anukai’s block, she finally landed a jab to the redhead’s stomach, prompting a small cry of surprise from her as she skipped backward, rubbing at the spot with her free hand.

“Get her back, Mama!” Lani called from the other side of the island counter beside them.

“Get her again, Mom!” Kal added, seemingly in opposition to her.

“Choosing sides now, are we?” Anukai teased, glancing toward them for a moment, which only opened another opportunity for Ikrie to lay a blow against her arm, prompting the redhead to let out a small cry in pain.

“Taking your eyes off the target?” Ikrie chided. “Maybe we need to train some more.”

Anukai narrowed her eyes, but redoubled her efforts to land a similar blow on Ikrie. Despite all of them, however, she never managed to hit her on her body, only a few more times on her arms, while Ikrie managed to land a jab into Anukai’s shoulder.

“Okay, I think we’re done,” the redhead sighed, rubbing at her shoulder with a slight grimace.

“And I think… that means I win!” Ikrie exclaimed, pumping one fist in the air.

Anukai rolled her eyes as Kal cheered, as well. The dark-haired woman placed her spoon down on the counter beside her before moving around it to scoop her son off the ground, grunting as she lifted him and held him aloft for a moment, his fists raised in cheer. The redhead laughed, shaking her head, before she glanced down to find Lani approaching and wrapping her arms around her waist.

“I believed in you, Mama,” the small girl said softly, a hint of sadness in her tone.

“Aww, thanks Lani,” Anukai replied, gently running her hand over her daughter’s auburn hair. “I’m sure I’ll do better next time.”

The girl nodded, but squeezed her a little tighter. Brow knit in concern, Anukai gently pulled her arms away before kneeling down before her.

“Hey, you know we were just playing, right?” she said softly. “Like you and Kal?”

Lani nodded, but kept her eyes lowered, not meeting her mother’s.

“Are you upset, Lani?”

“I wanted you to win…”

“I know, but… it wasn’t really losing,” Anukai said, tucking some errant, auburn locks behind one of her daughter’s ears. “I still had fun, even if Mommy jabs a little hard, and I’m not mad. Neither of us wins anything or loses anything, here.”

“I know, but… never mind,” Lani replied, still keeping her gaze lowered.

Anukai chewed the inside of her cheek for a moment before sighing and pulling Lani into a tight embrace, the girl returning it quickly.

“I’ll train and I promise I’ll be better next time… for you, Lani, okay?”

She felt the girl nod against her shoulder before she pulled away from her slightly, but kept her hands on her shoulders.

“I’ve gotta finish dinner, but after we’re done, you wanna show me what you were drawing?”

Lani nodded, Anukai offering a small smile before ushering her back toward the couch, watching her go as Ikrie sauntered back into the kitchen, bumping her hip against the redhead’s playfully.

“Getting rusty,” she teased.

“Yeah, maybe…”

Ikrie paused, the grin fading from her face as she turned to her mate, concern overtaking her expression.

“Everything okay? I didn’t, like, actually hurt you… right?”

“No, no, I’m… I’m fine, not hurt,” Anukai said, blinking and shaking her head as she turned back toward the mostly-prepared food. “Lani, she… I think she was… disappointed?”

“About what?”

“About me losing, just now,” Anukai sighed. “I tried to tell her we were just playing, but…”

“But she really wanted to see you win.”

The redhead nodded, grabbing the knife from where she’d left it and turning back to the cutting board, lifting it from the counter and turning to the skillet that had been heating up during their short battle.

“Probably didn’t help how much Kal was excited,” Ikrie sighed, beginning to gather some of the chopped herbs she had prepared earlier.

“I wasn’t expecting them to… you know…  _ pick sides _ .”

“I don’t think that means they do always,” the dark-haired woman shot back quickly, “if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“No, I just… never mind.”

Ikrie shot her a sideways look, but didn’t say anything else as they finished dinner and called the children to the table. As they ate, Anukai noted that Lani seemed more energetic, once again, but not quite at the same level as Kal. When they all finished, and the couple had cleaned up after everything, Anukai made her way to the couch, where she sank into a seat behind Lani, running one hand over her hair, again.

“Hey, you ready to show me that drawing?” she asked softly.

Lani nodded, coloring at something furiously for a moment before setting the charcoal aside.

“Just finished,” she proclaimed, lifting the small piece of parchment for Anukai to see.

The older redhead carefully tilted it so she could see the drawing, finding that it was of a tall, red-haired person standing over what appeared to be a crudely-drawn Thunderjaw on the ground, spear held in the air, with a much shorter, red-haired person beside them.

“Is that me and you?”

“After you killed a Thunderjaw,” Lani nodded.

“Did you help?”

“Not with the fighting… it’s too big and you were too good.”

Anukai smiled softly, squeezing Lani’s shoulder encouragingly.

“A very impressive scene,” she said, glancing down at her daughter to find her smiling up at her, but only with her lips. “Somehow I think this wasn’t your only drawing tonight.”

“W-what?” Lani stammered, her eyes widening.

“As impressive as this one is,” Anukai continued, “I’ve seen you draw similar works of art in much less time than you’ve spent drawing since you came home with Aunt Ara and Miss Vansa.”

The small girl fidgeted slightly, glancing toward what appeared to be a blank piece of parchment on the low table before her, prompting her mother to raise her eyebrows.

“Can I see your other drawing, too?”

Lani appeared to debate it for a few moments before finally nodding. Anukai reached toward the other piece of parchment, lifting it from the table and turning it over. On the other side, she found a drawing of a large group of figures at the bottom of the page, several of them with red hair, and two of them much shorter than the rest. In the center stood a figure with a single, red streak for hair that seemed to curl up and away from her head slightly, alongside another figure with much darker, curlier hair. They both stood over what appeared to be some kind of tube, out of which bright, star-shaped designs appeared to be flying into a field of a night sky above them.

“Miss Vansa’s fireworks,” Anukai said, nodding. “I heard about them. Sounds really exciting.”

“Yeah…” Lani replied, her tone somewhat hesitant.

“This is a great drawing of all of us,” her mother continued, glancing down at her. “Why were you hiding it?”

“I wanted you to have one to make you feel better…after… you know…”

Anukai smiled gently pulling Lani closer to her as the girl hugged her knee.

“I appreciate that you wanted to draw something just for me,” she said, “but this one also makes me feel happy.”

“Yeah?”

“You know how much I like being around everyone,” Anukai replied. “Plus, Ara’s always fun, you know.”

“With Miss Vansa, too!” Lani piped up excitedly. “They’re both fun.”

“Yeah?”

“Mhm,” the girl nodded. “Aunt Ara’s always fun when she’s happy.”

Anukai paused for a moment before gently rubbing at her daughter’s back.

“And she’s happy with Miss Vansa around?”

“Oh yeah,” Lani said, nodding emphatically. “I can tell.”

“Tell how?”

“They smile at each other a lot, like you and Mommy.”

Anukai nodded slowly, a grin tugging at her lips as she pat Lani on the back gently.

“Well, I think we’re all going to get to see Miss Vansa’s fireworks this weekend, and I’ll make sure Aunt Ara  _ and _ Miss Vansa see this.”

“Really?” Lani said, looking up at her with wide eyes.

“You’re excited about the fireworks, aren’t you?”

“Yeah!” she nodded, before pausing, her brow creasing slightly. “Also, because… you think Aunt Ara and Miss Vansa will like it?”

Lani pointed to the drawing, prompting a warm, swelling feeling to push at the inside of Anukai’s ribs, her smile broadening as she nodded.

“I think they’ll love it.”


	3. Come Bring the Flames

As the sun set and the time when Lani and Kal would usually be settling down for the night, their energy only began to increase. Ikrie had insisted everyone take a nap that afternoon, but Anukai still looked tired as she rubbed at her eyes and attempted to drink some more tea to jumpstart her mind and energy levels, but it seemed to be working very slowly.

“They’ll be pretty colors, and… oh, do you think they’ll be loud?” Lani asked, twirling with each step as she paced behind her mother.

“Not as loud as the big ones on the—” Anukai yawned deeply, shaking her head for a moment before sighing heavily, “the big ones on the summer solstice.”

“But still… loud?”

“I’m sure they’ll be plenty loud,” the older redhead nodded, downing the rest of her tea in one gulp before sliding the mug across the counter toward the sink. “Okay, think it’s about time we start heading out. Everyone ready?”

Lani and Kal both cheered as they rushed to pull their boots on, while Ikrie raised one eyebrow at her, sliding in beside her mate and rubbing her back.

“You going to make it?” she teased.

“I don’t know why I’m… like this,” Anukai mumbled.

“Not sleep well?”

“As well as I always do.”

“That… that’s a scale, Anukai.”

The redhead rolled her eyes, but couldn’t help the smirk on her face as she turned toward the dark-haired woman beside her, leaning down to plant a quick kiss on her.

“I’m sure once we get walking I’ll be fine,” she said.

Ikrie offered her a small smile, rubbing at her back for a moment longer before clearing her throat and turning to the children.

“Make sure you get your coats. It’s going to be cold out tonight.”

They both moaned and groaned about how they were already doing that, which only prompted Ikrie to snicker softly. A moment later, however, Kal approached them, holding a bundle of coats in his arms, the garments nearly falling free onto the floor.

“I got yours, too,” he mumbled from behind the pile.

“Thank you, Kallik,” Ikrie said, stepping forward to take hers and Anukai’s coats from him as he let out a sigh of relief, beginning to pull his own on slowly. “You’re getting good at carrying heavy things around here… maybe we should ask you to help out with more labor around here.”

“Labor?” he replied, tilting his head to the side slightly.

“Put you to work,” Anukai explained, smirking as she stepped forward, ruffling his hair before ushering him toward the door. “C’mon, don’t want to keep Aunt Ara waiting.”

“And Miss Vansa!” Lani added, glancing back at her mother and grinning.

“Yes, and Miss Vansa,” she nodded. “Speaking of which, Lani, do you have your present?”

The small girl’s eyes widened as she quickly hurried through the apartment toward her room. Ikrie raised her eyebrows at Anukai, but she simply smirked in return, remaining silent. A few moments later, Lani tore back into the living space, holding a rolled piece of parchment bound with a single, red ribbon in one hand.

“Got it!” she proclaimed, holding it above her head.

“Thank goodness,” Anukai sighed, feigning exaggerated relief as she ran the back of her hand across her brow.

Ikrie elbowed her side, prompting the redhead to grin, but neither said anything more as the children pulled the door open and skipped outside. Their mothers followed shortly behind, with Anukai locking the door behind them before jogging to catch up to the group. The walk through Meridian was one the older women had made many times before, under the soft glow of the artificial lights strung overhead, although the occasions that they had been joined by Lani and Kal were rather few, thus far. Both of them seemed particularly excited about this concept, as well.

When they finally managed to reach the massive elevators, the children quickly rushed to the far side of the car, trying to peer out through the openings in the outer metal structure as Ikrie pulled the lever to descend. Anukai moved behind Lani and Kal, placing her hands gently atop their heads and running her fingers over their hair.

“There’s so many lights,” Lani said softly, staring down at those of the lower village, rapidly growing larger and brighter as they descended.

“What about those out there?” Kal asked, staring straight ahead, out into the fields farther away from Meridian.

“Machines, Kal,” Anukai replied. “Grazing for the night.”

“Like… Lancehorns?” he asked tentatively, glancing up at her.

“Maybe a few of those,” she shrugged. “Not as many close to the city. What’s one that looks kind of like those, though?”

The dark-haired boy thought for a moment before his eyes widened in realization.

“Grazers?”

“Definitely some Grazers out there, mhm,” Anukai hummed.

“Scrappers?” Lani asked.

“They don’t graze on the ground,” the older redhead replied, turning toward her, now. “What do they eat, Lani?”

“Metal?”

“And is there a lot of metal out in the fields and the forests?”

“Other machines, maybe,” the small girl replied.

“True, they’re made of metal,” Ikrie chimed in, suddenly appearing on the other side of her daughter, placing her hand on her shoulder, “but do the Scrappers attack the other machines just because they’re made of metal?”

“Not usually…”

“Usually?”

“Unless they’re sick…” Lani replied sadly, glancing out toward the lights of the village, once again, as the elevator slowed to a stop at the bottom of the shaft.

Anukai and Ikrie exchanged glances that conveyed both surprise and nervousness, before swallowing and turning back to the doors as they slid open before them. A moment later, Lani’s melancholy had seemingly disappeared, as she rushed forward with Kal, stopping at the end of the short path to the elevator and turning to take in all of the sights and sounds of the lower village.

Merchants had largely packed up their stalls for the night, however many people still wandered about the dirt streets. Several were still leading Striders pulling carts behind them back to their homesteads for the night, prompting Anukai and Ikrie to grab Kal’s and Lani’s hands, respectively, keeping them close by as they navigated the streets toward the edge of the village.

When they reached the short, stone bridge over one of the small waterways that snaked away from the larger lake behind the wooden buildings of the village, Anukai led them toward one of the unplanted fields to the left. As they drew closer, she noted a dark, rectangular shape sitting still on one of the rough roadways between each of the fields. A moment later, two silhouettes appeared from the back of it, carrying large boxes in their arms. Even from this distance, the sounds of Ara’s and Vansa’s voices easily carried across the open grounds, prompting Anukai to shake her head, laughing softly.

“—put it where I told you, I wouldn’t have to ask where it is later!”

“It’s a big open field, Van! How could you lose one?”

When they approached the front of the truck, Lani and Kal quickly hurried around the side, approaching the two women at the back, who had just turned back to the machine.

“Aunt Ara!”

The children quickly swarmed the short-haired redhead, who groaned dramatically as they ran into her, wrapping their arms about her waist.

“You’d think you hadn’t just seen me a few days ago,” she teased, ruffling their hair gently before they both pulled away.

“Miss Vansa!”

They both moved toward her before stopping short, suddenly seeming unsure what to do and nervously fidgeting with their hands before them.

“Uh… hi, Miss Vansa!”

The brunette smirked, kneeling down before them and holding her arms out. Lani and Kal hesitated for a moment before Vansa nodded, motioning for them to come closer with her hands. With the invitation, they quickly rushed forward, wrapping her in an embrace, as well. Anukai found a warm feeling spreading from the center of her chest, and a smile tugged at her lips. As her gaze flicked to her left, she suddenly had a feeling it wasn’t entirely her own emotions suddenly tugging at her heart.

Ara was grinning broadly, her arms folded over her chest as she watched her niece and nephew with Vansa.

“I’m almost ready,” the brunette said, bringing Anukai’s attention back to her, finding Vansa holding the children by their shoulders an arm’s length from her. “Give me just a few more minutes and we’ll be good to go, okay?”

They both nodded, turning to hurry back to their mothers as Vansa rose to her feet with a groan, brushing at the dirt and dried plant debris on her knees. As she began to move back toward the truck, motioning for Ara to follow her, Lani tugged at the hem of Anukai’s coat, prompting her to kneel before her.

“When should I give it to them?” the auburn-haired girl whispered, gesturing to the parchment in her hand.

“Let them get all set up, and then give it to them.”

Lani nodded, grinning nervously as Anukai smiled reassuringly and tucked some of her daughter’s loose strands of hair behind her ears. As the older redhead rose to her feet, she gestured for Lani to stick by Ikrie before moving toward the back of the truck. Reaching it, she glanced inside to find Vansa just stepping up to the opening.

“Shit!” the healer yelped, nearly dropping the box in her arms. “Scared me, fucking hell…”

“Sorry,” Anukai smirked. “Need help?”

“You can take this, for that,” Vansa sighed, crouching down to hand a box to the redhead.

As Anukai took it, she grunted under the weight, shifting the box in her arms before turning to carry it back toward the others. Once she set it down with a soft groan of exertion, she rose to a standing position, glancing back to find Ara approaching with another.

“These are all fireworks?” she asked, gesturing to the boxes by her feet.

“Van went a little… crazy with it,” Ara replied, laughing. “She wanted Lani and Kal to see quite the show.”

“Well, and most of the lower village, I take it,” Anukai sighed, glancing back toward the lights behind them.

“Hey, it’s free entertainment,” the shorter-haired redhead shrugged. “Why not?”

Anukai laughed, nodding as Ara set her box down and rose to her feet, stretching her back with a groan.

“So… the kids are happy to see Vansa,” she prodded gently, raising her eyebrows.

“Yeah, I saw,” Ara nodded, grinning softly. “You should have seen Kal’s face at her shop the other day. He was  _ so _ excited.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, but I’m sure he told you all about it.”

“I’m sure he did, but…”

The sisters laughed as they began to make their way back toward the truck, where Vansa had unloaded two more boxes onto the ground, and was holding a third.

“These are the last ones,” the brunette said, nodding toward the other two behind her. “Care to grab those?”

“Why, but of course,” Ara replied, bowing dramatically as she paused.

Anukai caught Vansa roll her eyes, but the grin tugging at her lips betrayed her amusement.

“This is new,” the braided redhead commented, crouching to grab her box from the ground.

“What is?”

“This energy between you and Vansa,” she replied, lifting the wooden box from the ground and waiting for Ara to grab hers. “It’s… familiar but… fun.”

“Oh… uh… you could say that,” Ara replied, clearing her throat before grabbing her box and lifting it.

Anukai stared at her sister for a moment longer before ultimately deciding not to press further, at the moment, instead following her to deliver the last of the boxes near Vansa, who was prying the lids off them and scanning the contents.

“Okay… I think… Ara, can you take these three and bring them farther out, over there?”

“Farther out as in…?”

“Like… twenty yards,” Vansa replied, waving vaguely at the empty field behind her.

“That’s a bit far,” Ara replied, grabbing the first box. “Going to be able to see them from that distance?”

“Oh… we’ll see them,” the healer replied, smirking with a devilish glint in her eye. “The Palace just might see them…”

Both redheads stared back at her with wide eyes for a moment before blinking slowly, prompting Vansa’s brow to knit in confusion.

“What?”

“I hope you know what you’re doing…” Anukai sighed, shaking her head.

“I said twenty yards for safety,” Vansa replied. “I know how to put these together, so I know how far we should be from them.”

The redhead’s exchanged glances before Anukai shrugged and Ara smirked.

“Trust her,” the shorter-haired redhead said, leaning in close to her sister and whispering in her ear.

“If you do, I do,” Anukai replied, just as softly.

Ara paused for a moment, an unreadable expression on her face before her lips cracked into a grin. Without another word, however, she grabbed one of the boxes Vansa had indicated and set off to deliver it as asked. Clearing her throat, Anukai turned back to the brunette.

“Anything I can do?”

Within another ten minutes, the three women had set the boxes where Vansa had indicated, before the healer then instructed them on how to set up the fireworks within each one. Several of the boxes contained long tubes that they needed to dig into the ground, which proved to be thankfully not as hard as Anukai feared, as she quickly realized that the ground came nowhere near to freezing, even in the winter, in Meridian. Once all of the fireworks had been set, the three of them surveyed the field before Vansa sighed heavily.

“Okay, I think we’re ready… shall we make sure our audience is all here?”

“Audience?” Anukai shot back.

“I mean… it’d be a shame if I went through all of this effort for just us—as fun as we all are,” she added quickly, glancing toward Anukai with a momentarily panicked expression.

“I’m not offended” the redhead laughed. “Did you invite anyone else?”

“A few people…”

As they glanced back toward Ikrie and the kids, Anukai noticed that several other figures had joined them, and she grinned. The three women in the field made their way back toward the gathered group, Aloy and Talanah glancing up as they approached.

“Didn’t expect to see you here so late,” Anukai teased, moving in to wrap the elder redhead in an embrace.

“I took my nap earlier,” Aloy shot back, laughing.

“Me, too,” the younger redhead whispered, prompting both of them to laugh, Aloy patting the back of her shoulder playfully.

As she moved away from the elder redhead, Anukai made her way over to Bekan, each of them gripping each other’s forearms in a tight grasp, meeting each other’s eyes wordlessly for several moments before they both grinned and laughed.

“Haven’t seen you in a while,” Anukai said, nodding before glancing toward the dark-haired woman beside him, “either of you.”

“The Lodge probably won’t burn down if I took off a few hours early,” Laki replied, smirking.

“Well… I’m not too sure about the fields, out here, though,” the redhead quipped, glancing over the open ground where she had planted the fireworks minutes ago.

“There’s… more than I expected,” Bekan nodded. “Vansa made all of them herself?”

“So she says,” Anukai replied. “She might have let Ara help but…”

“But maybe not,” Laki finished, smirking.

“Maybe not,” the redhead agreed, mimicking her expression.

Anukai found her eyes instinctually drawn to the Sunhawk’s noticeably swollen middle, prompting her to swallow nervously when she saw Laki catch her gaze.

“How’s… how’s that going?” the redhead stammered.

“All’s good so far,” Laki nodded. “This little beasty keeps me up at night, though.”

“I know the feeling,” Anukai smirked, glancing back toward her daughter, who was continuing to pester Aloy a few yards away. “She didn’t really stop doing that once she was born, I’m afraid.”

“Well, then he can share in some of it,” the Sunhawk replied, nodding toward Bekan as he laughed.

“You say that as if I already get loads more sleep than you,” he shot back. “When you wake up, it wakes me up.”

“So you think,” Laki replied in a sing-song tone, prompting her mate to narrow his eyes at her.

“Mama!”

Anukai sighed, glancing between the couple before nodding over her shoulder.

“Duty calls.”

They all laughed before the redhead slipped away, returning to her daughter, who had finally given Aloy a moment’s peace.

“Is it time? Should I give it to them?” Lani whispered as her mother knelt before her.

“Could be,” Anukai whispered, as well. “Do you think it would be better to give it to them before or after the fireworks show, though?”

The small girl’s face contorted in thought before she seemed to come to a conclusion with a nod.

“After.”

“Really? Going to wait that long?”

“It’ll be special,” Lani asserted. “Like a reward.”

“Let’s call it ‘thanks’, instead, okay?”

“Yeah… a thank you,” she nodded, smiling. “That’s good.”

A moment later, Anukai caught Vansa lean in toward Ara, although in the near-total darkness at the fringes of the light cast from the village behind them and the lights from the truck, it was hard to see exactly what occurred, although the sudden burst of warmth in her chest gave the redhead a good idea. With that, the healer quickly jogged away, leaving Ara to clap her hands, drawing the gathered group’s attention.

“All right everyone, show’s about to start,” the redhead called loudly. “If I can direct your attention to the field behind me. Vansa has worked long and hard this week to put all of this together so… make sure she knows how much you appreciate her.”

With that, a loud cheer arose from the small crowd, Anukai catching Vansa glance back toward them before grabbing something from one of the boxes by the truck and jogging out into the field. As the healer reached the middle row of the fireworks, a small flame appeared from the narrow device in her hand, and she carefully began to light the wicks to several of the tubes in the field. A few moments later, several small explosions emitted from the tubes, as streaks of burning embers shot into the sky.

Just as they began to disappear amidst the darkness of the night sky overhead, the fireworks exploded, flashes of bright light and shimmering trails filling the sky to a chorus of loud booms that echoed across the open ground. Lani and Kal shrieked and cheered in excitement as the adults oohed and murmured with interest, as well.

The show continued as Vansa darted about the rows of fireworks, setting off a combination of ones that fired higher into the sky, as the initial ones had, and those that stayed closer to the ground, or even simply shot fountains of sparks from their position on the ground. After a few minutes, Anukai happened to glance back to find that an even larger crowd had gathered, seemingly drawn from the lower village by the lights and sounds. A grin tugged at her lips as she noted how many of them had brought children with them, either sitting on their shoulders or simply standing before them, staring wide-eyed at the sky.

Suddenly, a particularly loud boom shook the field and Anukai jumped in surprise, turning around in fear that something had gone wrong, only to find an even larger plume of shimmering colors falling from the sky. The redhead’s eyes widened in surprise as she found a grin tugging at her lips, uncontrollably. A moment later, she felt something tugging at her coat and she glanced down to find Lani beside her, pointing up at the lights.

Anukai said nothing, but knelt down beside her daughter, wrapping her left arm around her and holding her securely beside her as they both stared up at the largest fireworks of the night, the bright colors lighting the field in a constantly shifting array of colors, both redheads’ eyes transfixed on them. A minute or so later, the explosions finally subsided, but the crowd seemed to hold their breath for a moments longer, until finally a loud chorus of cheers and applause arose from all of them.

Lani began to jump up and down excitedly, Anukai grinning as she released her grip on her, rising to her feet and cheering, as well. She spotted Vansa still in the middle of the field between the figures ahead of her, still standing beside the last of the fireworks she had lit, before her silhouette began to jog forward, quickly approaching the crowd. As soon as she reached the front, Ara intercepted her, wrapping her arms tightly about the brunette and swinging her around, lifting her feet off the ground.

Anukai couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips as she watched them, listening to the sounds of cheers and applause from a crowd of people they had never met ring across the open field. As it finally began to die down, the murmur of voices began to replace the applause, prompting Anukai to glance back, finding the villagers beginning to make their way back toward their homes. With a grin, the redhead turned back to her daughter, crouching beside her and wrapping one arm around her shoulders.

“Hey, I think now would be a good time to give Aunt Ara and Miss Vansa your present.”

Lani let out an excited “oh” before pulling the parchment from within her jacket and hurrying between the people ahead of them, quickly finding her way to the two women. Anukai grinned and followed behind, but a little slower. When she broke free of the crowd, she found Ara and Vansa kneeling before Lani, who was holding the still-wrapped parchment before her.

Even before she could hear their voices, she could see the excited expressions on the two women’s faces, Ara’s also sporting an encouraging smile. As Anukai reached them, Lani finally held the parchment out toward them, in offering. The two women before her seemed surprised for a moment before Ara took it.

As Anukai knelt down behind Lani, the auburn-haired girl glanced back at her, grinning nervously. The redhead rubbed her back reassuringly as she watched her sister unfurl the parchment, holding it open before squinting in the darkness. Vansa rolled her eyes, but held the device she had used to light the fireworks between them, igniting the small flame so that they could both see the parchment.

As the light cast on the drawing, both women paused, eyes widening, before softer expression overtook their features, Ara glancing up at Lani.

“Little Red… you drew this before tonight?”

“After we saw you this week,” she confirmed.

“Well… I… Lani… this…” Ara sputtered, glancing down at the drawing before also turning to Vansa, Anukai noticing the hints of redness beginning to form along her sister’s cheekbones.

“It’s perfect, Lani,” Vansa finished. “I love it.  _ We _ love it.”

She glanced toward Ara and they both shared a broad grin before the brunette extinguished the flame and released the parchment, moving to pull the small redhead toward them. Anukai smiled broadly as she watched Lani wrap both women in as tight of an embrace as she could manage. The braided redhead noted how both women, not just Ara, seemed to be attempting to hold back the true expressions of what was pushing at the insides of their chests.

Ara spoiled the secret for Anukai, however, whether she wanted to or not.

When they finally pulled apart, Ara cleared her throat, carefully beginning to roll the parchment, once again.

“I’ll make sure this is hung up properly, where we can both see it as much as we can.”

“So… you’ll share?”

The women paused, glancing toward each other before turning back to Lani.

“If you want us to, of course,” Ara replied.

“Of course, Auntie!”

The redhead grinned broadly as she nodded.

“Good, because Vansa makes me share no matter what.”

The brunette rolled her eyes, punching Ara’s shoulder playfully as Lani giggled.

“It’s for her own good,” Vansa chimed in. “Thank you Lani, sincerely.”

The auburn-haired girl mumbled a soft “you’re welcome” before the two women before her glanced toward Anukai.

“We’ve gotta clean up, but it’s late, and you should probably start heading home with your Mama,” Ara said, beginning to turn Lani toward her mother.

The small girl nodded, but before she could fully be turned in place, she wrapped Ara in a tight embrace, once again. The short-haired redhead glanced over Lani’s shoulder toward Anukai, finding her grinning, as well. Ara finally pat the small girl on the back, signaling the end of the embrace, and they pulled apart.

“Do I get one more?” Vansa suddenly asked, raising her eyebrows at Lani.

The girl turned to her, seemingly without hesitation, and threw her arms around the healer, as well. Almost immediately, Anukai felt an explosion of warmth in her chest, quickly spreading throughout her body. Her gaze carefully turned to Ara, at the sudden sensation, finding her sister staring at the image of Lani and Vansa with perhaps the softest, most genuine smile Anukai had ever seen her wear.

Inhaling deeply, the braided redhead slid over to her sister, kneeling beside her before wrapping one arm behind her back, squeezing her gently.

“I’m glad you’re happy,” she whispered.

“Huh? Oh, I love Lani’s drawing, it’s—”

“I’m glad,” Anukai interrupted, “but that’s not what I meant.”

She turned toward her sister to find Ara staring back at her with raised eyebrows, prompting Anukai to smirk.

“Don’t think I don’t know,” she whispered, reaching up to tap her temple with her free hand. “I can  _ feel _ it… and so can Lani.”

Ara’s face quickly began to flush a deep red as her sister grinned and shook her gently.

“I’m happy for you,  _ sis _ ,” she smirked, turning Ara’s casual nickname on her.

The other redhead laughed, leaning her weight into Anukai for a moment as she sighed heavily.

“Thanks… I’m… me, too.”


	4. I Haven't Recovered Since

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, Aloy and Talanah have their moments, too.
> 
> This one probably makes the most sense if you've read my fic _Singularity_ , but feel free to jump in even if you haven't.

It was a strange feeling, looking at the faces of the people she cared about and the only thought running through her head being: “kill.”

It couldn’t be hers, but yet it seemed so natural, so effortless, the way it floated from the back of her mind to take root in her core. This was something she was supposed to do. Something she had to do.

As she watched her hands reach toward the red-haired figure before her, legs carrying her closer even when she didn’t remember making them move, the realization began to dawn on her and she tried desperately to stop, to freeze in place.

It was wrong. She wasn’t supposed to hurt her. This was not her enemy.

Or was she?

No, she wasn’t.

She could convince herself.

If she just tried…

It didn’t work.

She watched as her hands closed around the throat of the young redhead, Anukai’s eyes wide as her grip grew stronger, squeezing at the pale skin. Others and the redhead’s own hands tried to tear at her grip, clawing at the skin on the backs of her hands and her forearms, but they did little and ultimately seemed to fade away into the background, drawing no blood, until finally the gold-green hazel eyes rolled back, revealing nothing but the whites below them as the young woman’s body went limp.

Immediately, control seemed to come back to her as she released the heavy form, watching helplessly as Anukai’s body tumbled to the ground, splayed across the shiny, artificially black floor in an unnatural pose, like a discarded child’s doll. Her skin looked almost pale enough to be porcelain, contrasted against the bright red of her hair.

She had done this.

She had killed her.

The face so much like—

The next thing she knew, she was screaming.

The world suddenly seemed to shift in the blink of an eye, the bright, artificial lighting giving way to a near-black space, although the hints of stone walls were just visible in the faint, silver light through a window somewhere to her right. She attempted to sit up, throwing the last coverings of some kind of sheets off her, only for something to grab at her shoulders almost immediately. She began to thrash against it, trying to twist and push away as panicked gasps and whimpers ripped from her throat, but the grip held tight.

“Talanah!”

Her efforts continued for another several moments before she began to still, the voice breaking through the panicked haze that had settled over her. Finally, her gaze focused on the darkness before her, taking in her feet braced atop the dark, red blanket before she glanced to her left, the beginnings of a face materializing from the darkness she found there. As soon as she caught sight of the hints of copper surrounding a pale face with a set of gold-green hazel eyes in the center, her lip began to tremble as the whimper in her chest became more sad than scared.

“Easy, easy…”

The Carja squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, but the image of the similar face, drained of color with eyes wide and unseeing, flashed before her and she quickly pressed the heels of her hands to her own, the images of the redheaded figure burning away and being replaced by the bright lights and patterns caused by the pressure as she continued to gasp and pant heavily.

“It was just a dream… it was just a dream…”

“I-it… was a  _ memory _ …”

Talanah wrenched her hands away from her face, turning back to Aloy for a moment to find the redhead with an unreadable expression on her face for a moment before she cleared her throat and gently squeezed the Carja’s left upper arm.

“I know you, I know  _ this _ ,” she said softly. “It wasn’t a memory. You saw something that didn’t happen.”

“B-but… I-I remember…”

“All of us are safe,” she continued, gently leaning the Carja back onto the bed, bringing her to rest against the pillows that had nearly been thrown aside in her nightmare. “You didn’t hurt us.”

“I-I… you’re sure?” the Carja managed, her voice cracking. “Anukai, she’s… she’s okay?”

Aloy offered a small, reassuring smile as she nodded, leaning forward to press a kiss against her cheek.

“She’s fine… I’m fine… Ashana’s fine… Ikrie’s fine…”

With each part of her phrase, she accentuated the words with a kiss along the Carja’s jaw line until she was left hovering over her lips, but she held back from truly closing the gap. Talanah’s lower lip began to quiver as her jaw clenched and her eyes slid closed, once again, a sound like a sob escaping her.

“It… it felt so  _ real _ …”

“I know… I know…”

“I…”

“You’re okay, too,” Aloy replied softly, finally moving forward to press a soft kiss against her mate’s lips, lingering in place for a moment or two before pulling back, but only by an inch or two. “Trust me, this time.”

Talanah’s lower lip threatened to quiver, again, for a moment until she ultimately bit down on it and nodded.

“I… I always trust you…”

Aloy offered a small smile before raising one hand to brush some of the Carja’s raven hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear before repeating the motion on the opposite side. As she did, Talanah suddenly turned toward her hand, placing a kiss against the back of it and prompting the redhead to pause. The Carja remained still for several long moments before her lips finally pulled away, her next breath sounding incredibly shaky and almost like a sob, still.

Frowning, Aloy slid her hand along the opposite side of Talanah’s face, gently running her thumb over the Carja’s cheek before leaning in to place another slow, gentle kiss against her lips. Even though Talanah returned the gesture, she could feel the tremors still wracking her body, and the redhead instinctually pressed herself closer against her. The Carja responded, in kind, by wrapping her arms as tightly around her as she could manage, the grip with her left notably less than her right, however.

Aloy responded by sliding her hand from alongside Talanah’s face to behind her shoulder, squeezing with enough force to feel reassuring, but without putting undue strain on her.

After a few moments, their lips pulled apart, although their grips remained tight around each other.

“I’ll stay up with you as long as you need,” Aloy whispered.

Talanah offered a small, thin-lipped smile in return before the redhead placed another, small kiss on the corner of her lips and nuzzled her cheek against the Carja’s.

“Hey, tomorrow—or whatever day you wanna call it when we wake up—” Aloy began, eliciting a soft laugh from her mate, “what do you say we get everyone together? We’ve gotta use some of that meat we bought the other day, anyway, and we  _ did _ buy kind of a lot for the two of us…”

Talanah nodded, humming softly as Aloy’s left hand slid lower along her right side, massaging at the knots of muscle in her lower back. A moment later, the Carja closed her eyes and let out a soft moan, prompting her mate to stop.

“Did I hurt you?”

“No, no…” she replied quickly. “Feels… really good…”

Aloy smirked, releasing her grip around Talanah and propping herself up with one arm beside her, instead.

“Flip over.”

The Carja raised her eyebrows at her as the redhead’s smirk grew broader.

“It’s much easier work that way, you know.”

Moving gingerly, Talanah managed to roll to her right, lying flat on her stomach before Aloy swung herself into place, straddling her legs as she came to rest against her own heels.

“Let me know if it’s too painful, anywhere,” she said softly, beginning to run her hands slowly across her mate’s back.

Talanah hummed an affirmative as her eyes slid closed, already reveling in the redhead’s motions. A few moments later, Aloy began to press her fingers into her back, seeking out the areas of greatest tension before applying more pressure and slowly working at the knots in the muscle. The Carja let out several quiet moans when the redhead found some particularly tight spots, but none that truly sounded like she was in pain.

During her work, Aloy avoided her left shoulder, in particular, but there was enough to work with elsewhere that the massage continued for some time, even without the one particular area.

“Goddess, you are just a ball of tension,” she teased. “You’d think you have a stressful job, perhaps.”

“Mmm, and perhaps I don’t relax enough at home…”

Aloy let out a short laugh, shaking her head.

“Don’t you even give me that,” she shot back. “You know how more nights than not end up…”

“I do…” Talanah sighed, turning her head to the side a little more and cracking one eye. “It’s fun, but… restful? Relaxing?”

Aloy paused her motions for a moment, glancing down at the Carja with an expression like surprise.

“You saying you want to do  _ less _ ?”

“Not exactly,” Talanah sighed, moving to roll herself over, once again, prompting Aloy to clamber off her and stretch out at her side, once again.

Almost immediately, the Carja’s hand slid onto the redhead’s side, draping over it and wrapping behind her back, tugging her ever so slightly closer.

“I just… appreciate the calm moments, too,” Talanah continued. “We had so few of them in the past…”

Aloy offered a small, almost sad, smile as she nodded.

“I know what you mean.”

“And—let’s be honest—” the Carja continued, “—we both know my left arm isn’t what it used to be…”

“I said, if anything’s painful…”

“I know, I know,” she sighed, “and I really love that you’re careful about it, but… but don’t look… don’t think less of me…”

Aloy’s brow furrowed in concern as she draped an arm across the Carja’s middle, squeezing her gently in a one-armed embrace.

“Never,” she replied. “You didn’t stop being  _ you _ just because you got hurt.”

Talanah frowned slightly, prompting the redhead to sigh.

“I didn’t fall in love with you because of how many heavy things you could lift,” she said, leaning her head slightly to meet the amber eyes across from her, “and I’m not going to stop now just because of that.”

Aloy suddenly released her grip about the Carja to grab at her right wrist, lifting her hand to place her palm against the center of her chest.

“I already gave you this until it stops.”

Talanah smiled back at her even as her eyes began to grow watery, prompting Aloy to release her hand and lean forward, pressing into a firm kiss. The Carja reciprocated it in full, her right arm wrapping behind Aloy’s back with all of the strength and intensity she had known for decades. They remained locked in their firm entanglement for several long minutes until they both finally slowed, breathing heavily as they pulled apart, although Aloy still brushed her lower lip against Talanah’s for a moment or two, placing one last, quick kiss against her before exhaling slowly.

“You come down, now, or do I need to prove all of it to you some more?” the redhead breathed, her lips tugging into a slight grin.

“You can keep proving it,” Talanah replied just as softly, “by staying this close the rest of the night.”

Aloy laughed softly, the sound almost more of a rumble in her chest as she leaned forward, burying her face in the crook of the Carja’s neck, once again, her lips pressing against the exposed skin there several times before she turned to just inches from her ear.

“If I could all the time… I would.”

Talanah grinned as she turned her head toward her mate, her cheek coming to rest against the redhead’s for a moment as Aloy’s hands gently massaged at her side, once again. When the redhead spoke, again, her voice was heavy with sincerity and warmth, bringing a weight to her words that proved they were far more than teasing.

“You’re my favorite place to be.”

Talanah squeezed her close, once again, as they adjusted their positions slightly, both of them seeming to sink into the mattress beneath them as the Carja felt her eyes sliding closed. This time, there was no fear of what came with the sleep that would follow. Her vision was filled with reds and golds and greens, but they brought warmth and security rather than fear and tension.

It was a feeling she knew was hers, deep down, that no one had planted except herself.

And perhaps a fiery huntress that had crashed into her life, one day in an infirmary.


End file.
